


Graveside Confessions

by sophh



Series: An Artist and Her Muse [3]
Category: Harry Potter - J. K. Rowling
Genre: F/M, Setting: graveyard, Tissues may be needed, deals with character death
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-11-17
Updated: 2020-11-17
Packaged: 2021-03-09 22:13:47
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 725
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/27603320
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/sophh/pseuds/sophh
Summary: Astoria visits Colin's grave with something she needs to get off her chest.
Relationships: Colin Creevey/Astoria Greengrass
Series: An Artist and Her Muse [3]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/1934695
Comments: 1





	Graveside Confessions

Astoria looked around at the solemn, grey slabs of marble and fought back the bizarre urge to laugh. She was here to visit one person, and he would have  _ hated _ the dreary sameness of the graveyard he was buried in. 

It took her a few minutes to find the right spot, but once she did, she had to take a few deep breaths to steady herself. The gravestone she had come to visit was so small and unadorned, a marked difference from the ornate ones nearby. She stared down at it, tears pricking at her eyes. Colin had been so young.

_ Too _ young. 

...

_ "Tori, this is amazing!" Colin gushed, staring at the portrait of himself in awe. "How did you—when did you finish—?" _

_ "Yesterday," Astoria said, smiling. "I wanted to enchant it before I gave it to you, you know, but those spells are a bit behind my capabilities."  _

_ Colin shook his head. "No matter. It's beautiful, Tori, really."  _

_ Astoria flushed and fixed her eyes on the ground. She thought that it was one of the best she had ever done. Even though it didn't move, it seemed to capture Colin's playful energy perfectly. "Thanks, Colin."  _

_ "I mean it," the Gryffindor boy insisted.  _

_ "I know you do." Astoria sat on the stone bench tucked away inside the alcove and looked up at him. "You're such a supportive...friend."  _

_ He shrugged. "It's easy to be supportive when you're so talented." _

_ It wasn't the reply she wanted, but it warmed her insides nonetheless.  _

...

Astoria took a deep breath and willed herself not to cry because Colin wouldn't have wanted that. Instead, she reached out and traced the letters of his name, moving from C to Y in one long stroke. 

"Hi, Col," she whispered, voicing the nickname she had only allowed herself to use inside her head. She suddenly felt self-conscious, even though there was no one else around to hear her. She knelt down in the grass and sighed. "It's Astoria—Tori. I...I'm sorry that I didn't come visit you earlier." 

Tears began to stream down her cheeks, and she allowed herself a small sniffle before continuing. "It was just too hard, you know? Too...final." 

Another sniffle. "I actually decided to come today because I have something I need to...get off my shoulders." 

She paused, feeling the weight of her confession on her tongue but not knowing how to put it into words. "So...this is awkward. Maybe I shouldn't have come—" 

She stood, preparing to leave, but another look down at his headstone solidified her resolve to tough it out and stay, the way that he would have. "Look, I grew up inside the war, same as you. Now, it's over and I...I'm not sure what peace is supposed to feel like, but I think it may feel a lot like you. Or rather, a lot like the way you made me feel. Does that make any sense? I don't know. You always had a way of catching me off guard, Col, and I guess you still do."

She briefly dabbed at her eyes with her cloak, trying to staunch the flow of tears, but it barely made a difference. 

"Anyway," she soldiered on, "in case it wasn't clear—because Merlin knows I never followed through on this while you were here—I fancied you. A lot. And I guess I'll never know if you fancied me back, but that's okay. I really treasured our time together, even if it was only as friends. I hope you knew that." 

She cleared her throat and made another fruitless swipe at her cheeks. "Well, that's all I came to say, really. I hope you...I hope you've found peace, too, Colin. Truly. No one deserves it more than you." 

At that point, her voice broke and she let her emotions wash over her. She didn't know how long she stood there sobbing, but eventually the tears stopped and she was able to conjure up a small bouquet of flowers—a cheerful shade of yellow that Colin would have loved. 

After placing them at the foot of the grave, Astoria turned and walked out of the graveyard with her head held high and her spirits lightened. She had said her piece and set her feelings free. Maybe now, she could finally move on. 

**Author's Note:**

> I'd love to continue this as a Colin lives!AU. Thoughts?


End file.
